Adjustable outlet box bracket

ABSTRACT

An adjustable outlet box bracket for attachment to studs or joists, which includes a first and a second telescoping rail portion with arms. At least one mounting bracket for outlet boxes is laterally positionable on the rail portions and fixable thereto. The arms are bendable to permit the degree to which the outlet box extends beyond the face of studs or joists to be adjusted.

SUMMARY

The invention relates to outlet box brackets, and more particularly to adjustable outlet box brackets.

In the field of building and construction, particularly commercial construction where there are great pressures to complete jobs in a timely manner and with great precision, the use of steel wall studs and joists is widespread. In these applications, outlet boxes, such as for electrical, telecommunications, water, medical gases, vacuum and other services are not always attached directly to the studs or joists, but are mounted to brackets that in turn are attached to either the studs or joists, or brackets that mount to the floor track. In most cases, once the bracket is mounted, the lateral position of the outlet box relative to the stud or joist is determined, and the user can either not make any further lateral adjustments (or fine lateral adjustments) because of the design of the bracket, or the bracket must be removed and repositioned. There is accordingly a need for an adjustable outlet box bracket that permits easy and quick lateral adjustment of the position of the outlet box on the bracket, even after the outlet box and bracket are installed to wall studs or joists.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an isometric front view of an exemplary embodiment of an outlet bracket of the invention with two outlet boxes shown in phantom attached to wall studs in phantom.

FIG. 2 is an exploded view showing the parts of the exemplary adjustable outlet box of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a detail showing an exemplary embodiment of a depth adjustment feature of the attachment arms.

FIG. 4 is an exploded detail showing one way in which an outlet box can be attached to a sliding mount of the outlet bracket of the invention.

FIG. 5 is a top view of the exemplary embodiment of an outlet bracket of the invention shown in FIG. 1 attached between two studs and with two outlet boxes attached.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view through view lines 6-6 of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a detail showing an exemplary locking engagement of the rail sections of the exemplary adjustable outlet box of FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view through view lines 8-8 of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is another exemplary embodiment of a mounting bracket attached to the first and second rail portions.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Turning to FIGS. 1 and 2, there are shown views of an exemplary embodiment of an adjustable outlet bracket 10 of the invention with two outlet boxes “B” shown in phantom attached to wall studs “S” in phantom. The adjustable outlet bracket 10 includes a first rail portion 12 and a second rail portion 14. One or more slideable outlet box brackets 32A and 32B slideably engage with the first and second rail portions 12 & 14 and permit lateral adjustment of the outlet boxes B relative to the studs S. Each of the first and second rail portions 12 & 14 has an attachment arm 16 and 18, respectively, that has a mounting tab 20 and 22, with apertures 24 and 26 formed therethrough, for mounting screws 30 for mounting the rails to the studs S. FIG. 1 shows two identical slideable mounting brackets 32A and 32B which slideably engage with the rails and permit lateral movement of the mounting brackets 32 (and attached outlet boxes) on the rails 12 and 14. Set bolts 34 which pass through apertures 36 in the mounting brackets 32 can be used to immobilize the lateral position of the mounting brackets 32A and 32B relative to the rail once the desired lateral position of the outlet boxes has been determined. Outlet box screws 50 are provided for mounting the outlet box B to the mounting bracket 32 through bracket screw holes 52. As best shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 6, the first rail portion 12 has a back wall 40, side walls 42 and 44, and front wall extensions 46 and 48 that engage the second rail portion 14, which can comprise a U-shaped rail with a back wall 60 and side walls 62 and 64 that will slideably fit and be captured inside the first rail portion 12. The first rail portion 12 has an insert end 54 and the second rail portion 14 has an insert end 56. The second rail portion's insert end 56 is slid into the first rail portion's insert end 54. The telescoping nature of the fit between the first rail portion 12 and the second rail portion 14 permits the adjustable outlet bracket 10 to attached between studs or joists that are spaced a range of distances apart. An embodiment of the mounting bracket 32 has a front wall 70, side walls 72 and 74, and front wall extensions 76 and 78, and the mounting bracket 32 is sized and shaped to slideably fit around the outside of the first rail portion 12. As shown, the set bolt 34 will pass through the aperture 36 and will bear down on the outside of the first rail portion to thereby immobilize the mounting bracket 32. The outlet box screws 50 are used to retain the outlet box B to the mounting bracket and screw into bracket screw holes 52.

Turning to FIG. 9, there is shown another exemplary embodiment of a mounting bracket 86, and is shown attached to the first rail portion 12 with a back wall 40 and second rail portion 14. The mounting bracket 86 includes a front wall 88, side walls 90 and 92, and an extension 94 extending upwardly from the side wall 90. A threaded hole 96 is formed in side wall 92. A catch 98 is provided that has an upper portion 100 with a catch aperture 102 formed therein and has a downwardly directed portion 104. A screw or bolt 106 passes through the catch aperture 102 and into the threaded hole 96, with the downwardly directed portion 104 of the catch aperture abutting the back wall 40 of the first rail portion 12 and thereby preventing the mounting bracket 86 from being removed from the first rail portion 12 and/or second rail portion 14. The screw or bolt 106 immobilizes the lateral position of the mounting bracket on the first rail portion 12. This mounting bracket has an advantage in that it can be attached to and detached from the first and second rail portions after they have been telescopically engaged with each other.

FIG. 3 is a detail showing an exemplary embodiment of a depth adjustment feature of first rail portion 12. This depth adjustment feature can comprise providing the first and second rail portions with the attachment arms 16 and 18 and their mounting tabs 20 and 22 in an unbent orientation, with bend lines 80 which will permit the setting of different set working distances between the front of the stud or joist to which the adjustable outlet bracket and the face of the rails. A user can set the desired depth by bending the arm portion 16 at the bend lines. This can be useful to adjust the depth of the outlet box depending on the wall covering material intended to be used.

FIG. 4 is an exploded detail showing one way in which an outlet box B can be attached to a mounting bracket 32 of the outlet bracket with screws or bolts 50 that will screw into screw holds 52 on the front face of the mounting bracket. The mounting bracket 32 has a front wall 70, side walls 72 and 74, and front wall extensions 76 and 78, and the mounting bracket 32 is sized and shaped to slideably fit around the outside of the first rail portion 12. The mounting brackets 32A and 32B are shown as being generally C-shaped so that they are relegated to be engaged with the first and second rail portions by being slid over the insert ends 55 and/or 56 thereof. However, as shown in FIG. 9, an embodiment of the invention that permits clamping of the outlet box to the rails is provided.

FIG. 5 is a top view of the exemplary embodiment of an outlet bracket of the invention shown in FIG. 1 attached between two studs S and with two outlet boxes B attached two mounting brackets 32A and 32B. Although not shown, in the case that an oversized (e.g. extra wide) outlet box, such as a 2, 3, 4, 6, etc. gang outlet box, can be supported by using two or more mounting brackets and mounting the outlet box to the two or more mounting brackets. Moreover, it is also possible that two or more outlet boxes can be mounted to a single mounting bracket, particularly if the mounting bracket is wide and outlet box is narrow. In this way, maximum versatility is achieved.

FIGS. 7 and 8 show an exemplary optional locking engagement of the rail portions 12 and 14 of the exemplary adjustable outlet box of FIG. 1, in which a bendable lock tab 90 on the front wall extension 46 define by cut lines 92 is pushed down and a bendable lock tab 94 on the side wall 62 of second rail portion 14 is also bent down so as to engage with each other. An advantage of including the locking engagement is that it will prevent the complete withdrawal of the second rail portion 14 from the first rail portions 12 and also prevents the two rail portions from being pulled apart to such a degree that the bracket would insufficiently support outlet box(es) affixed thereto. While the locking engagements are shown as being on the front wall extension 46 and the side wall 62, tabs can be formed on other parts of the rails (e.g., cutouts on the back wall 40 of first rail portion 12 and the front wall 60 of the second rail portion 14, shown.)

Having thus described exemplary embodiments of the present invention, it should be understood by those skilled in the art that the above disclosures are exemplary only and that various other alternatives, adaptations and modifications may be made within the scope of the present invention. The presently disclosed embodiments are to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. 

1. An adjustable outlet box bracket, comprising: a first rail portion with a first rail portion support arm at one end; a second rail portion with a second rail portion support arm at one end, wherein the first and second rail portions engage with each other to provide for adjustment between the distance between the first and second rail portion support arms; and at least one mounting bracket that engages with at least one of the first and second rail portions and whose lateral position on the at least one of the first and second rail portions is adjustable.
 2. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 1, wherein the at least one mounting bracket has an affixation device for attaching at least one outlet box thereto.
 3. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 2, wherein the affixation device comprises at least one screw or bolt that passes through at least one aperture in the at least one mounting bracket.
 4. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 1, wherein the at least one mounting bracket has a mounting bracket locking device for affixing the lateral position of the at least one mounting bracket on at least one of the first and second rail portions.
 5. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 4, wherein the mounting bracket locking device comprises a screw or bolt that passes through an aperture in the mounting bracket and is adapted to impinge on at least one of the first and second rail portions.
 6. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 1, wherein the first rail portion and second rail portion are adapted to telescopically engage with each other.
 7. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 1, further comprising a locking device for preventing the first rail portion and second rail portion from being separated from each other.
 8. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 7, wherein the locking device comprises a tab on the first rail portion and a tab on the second rail portion which are adapted to interfere with each other.
 9. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 1, wherein the first and second rail portion support arms each comprise a strip of material that extend from the first and second rail portion, with each strip of material having a free end that can be bent along a bend line to provide for a plurality of distances between the desired line and the first and second rail portions.
 10. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 1, wherein a plurality of mounting brackets are provided for supporting a plurality of outlet boxes or oversized outlet boxes which require support by more than one mounting bracket.
 11. An adjustable outlet box bracket, comprising: a first rail portion; a second rail portion, wherein the first and second rail portions telescopically engage with each other to provide for adjustment of the total length of the engaged first and second rail portions; and at least one mounting bracket that includes an outlet box affixation device for attaching at least one outlet box thereto, the mounting bracket being adapted to engage with at least one of the first and second rail portions and whose lateral position on the at least one of the first and second rail portions is adjustable and fixable thereon.
 12. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 11, wherein the first and second rail portions each have a support arm, the support arms comprising a strip of material having a free end that can be bent along a desired line to provide for a plurality of distances between the bend line and the first and second rail portions.
 13. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 11, further comprising a locking device for preventing the first rail portion and second rail portion from being separated from each other.
 14. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 13, wherein the locking device comprises a tab on the first rail portion and a tab on the second rail portion which are adapted to interfere with each other.
 15. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 11, wherein a plurality of mounting brackets are provided for supporting plurality of outlet boxes or oversized outlet boxes which require support by more than one mounting bracket.
 16. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 11, wherein the lateral position of the mounting bracket is affixed to the first and second rail portions by a screw or bolt that passes through an aperture in the mounting bracket and impinges on at least one of the first and second rail portions.
 17. The adjustable outlet box bracket of claim 11, wherein the at least one mounting bracket has a mounting bracket locking device for affixing the lateral position of the at least one mounting bracket on at least one of the first and second rail portions. 